I'm building a shop/garage at our new home in MS, and I'm at the stage for selecting my lift. I've pretty much narrowed it down to a 2 post lift because I think those best suit my needs. Primary vehicles on the lift would be Toyota 4x4s; but want it large/strong enough to handle a Suburban or 2500HD size vehicle should the need arise. I can also see using it on small farm type tractors and SXSs and ATVs. Any one have any recommendations for good brands/models, or brands/models to avoid?

Hope all are doing well, I'm still planning going on some rides if we can ever get my shop completed and maybe get a new heavier duty tow vehicle. My 1999 Z71 didn't like towing the '84 Toyota almost 300 miles...

I would stay away from any chinese junk or lifts with the connector strip/cable running across the floor instead of across the top.

https://www.bendpak.com/car-lifts/" rel="nofollow - https://www.bendpak.com/car-lifts/

You'll find you will end up buying other things to go along with your lift. A lift oil drain is really nice. Lincoln makes some really good ones that pump out using shop air. Also a transmission jack is kinda necessary. An adjustable pole jack is also kinda hard to do without. Whatever lift you get, make sure you can get truck frame adapters. 

Lifts are stupid expensive at the moment and hard to get. I looked up my lift the other day when John Ballentine was looking. Its $5900 for it with no accessories. I think I paid about $3200 for mine. 

Thanks for the insights, I have no real experience with lifts and this helps me know some specific features to look for. I'm going to my stepfather's friend's shop tomorrow, he has 4-5 lifts and bought a couple pretty recently. I hope to get his recommendations not only on model and size, but on a 'local' dealer that is good to work with. It does seem like prices have gone up significantly recently, but when I looked around a few months ago I was just trying to get a general feel for the prices. Thanks again

One feature you really want is lock release by the rack controls. 

Mine is a Bendpak 10K symmetric lift, this one: https://www.bendpak.com/car-lifts/two-post-lifts/xpr-10xls/" rel="nofollow - https://www.bendpak.com/car-lifts/two-post-lifts/xpr-10xls/   They have a pretty good set of guides https://www.bendpak.com/best-car-lift-guide/" rel="nofollow - here .

Make sure that you have adequate prep of the floor for the lift.  Bendpak https://www.bendpak.com/car-lifts/concrete-floor-requirements/" rel="nofollow - has a document which clearly outlines the requirements for the floor .  You will need 220VAC for the lift, and I put a 110V outlet on the lift itself, you are always needing to power a drill or a light or whatever.  My Architect friend who drew up the shop included the bendpak requirements and the floor concrete guy did it right.

Also, consider getting a tall lift if you can.  My F250 requires that for me to be able to walk under the truck on the lift without it hitting the overhead e-stop with the top of the truck or me bashing my bald head on the undercarriage. 

Some modern trucks have very rounded frames (I think I read that Chevy is worst) and have been known to slide off the pucks, so you may need the u-shaped lift-arm pads to be safe.  Many late model cars are beginning to require unique pads for use with a lift.  John fabricated some for me for my 911.

Get the correct size ratcheting wrench for the post cable.  Mine needed adjustment after lifting a few vehicles because the cables stretch and one side is slightly higher than the other.  Mine requires a 27MM wrench.  It can be done with a simple wrench, but its a pain, you can only turn the adjustment bolt about 1 bolt-flat at a time.  Socket wont work, no clearance.

PS - be careful what coating you get on your concrete shop floor.  I got the wrong one, although it was recommended by the concrete guy, its crap.  Gasoline, brake cleaner, probably other stuff will turn the coating into a sticky gooey mess.  I changed the fuel filter in Kari's 4Runner the other day and had some towels on the floor to catch the dribbles, and forgot them there.  A few hours later the towels were pretty firmly glued to the floor.  At some point, I will refinish the center of my shop floor where vehicles are, probably in an epoxy coating of some kind.

HTH

Toydawg wrote: but on a 'local' dealer that is good to work with.

I bought directly from bendpak.  They shipped to a freight yard where I picked it up.  The freight yard forked it onto my trailer.  It weighed somewhere around 1500bs IIRC. 

I have a friend who buys and sells and installs lifts as a side business, he is in Murfreesboro, Tn if you want his contact info.  I had him install my lift.  Its not hard to do, but having never done it before, I am glad I did.  At this point, though, having seen it done, I would not be afraid to do the installation myself. 

You will need either several guys at once or a tractor or forklift to place and then raise each post into position.  They are about 600lbs each.  You will need a hammerdrill and the correct size bit to drill the holes in the concrete, and no, you do NOT set the post mounting pins in wet concrete.  Bendpak says in their installation instructions that not following the instructions voids the warranty, so I drilled holes in my brand new concrete floor.  This also means that you need some substantial time between finishing the floor and installing the lift for the concrete to cure sufficiently.

You will need the wiring at least roughed-in prior to install so that the hydraulic pump can be run and bled once its installed.

Thanks for sharing your lessons learned, insights and links; hopefully I can take advantage and avoid my usual method of learning lessons the hard way.

alabamatoy wrote:  be careful what coating you get on your concrete shop floor.

My builder's foreman was talking about a latex coating, yours may be similar. I used a DIY epoxy (from Lowes/Home Depot) on my shop in Madison; coating worked well until I overlooked a puddle of brake fluid. DIY was a lot of work, not sure I want to go that route on this shop. Might just do some sections.

That's true. All that extra money for a little plate attached. Insurance is a scam.